Oscilloscope makes the grade with "A Teacher"

Though Sundance may be receding in the rearview, that doesn’t mean those films that did not get an immediate splashy pickup at the festival have fallen off the face of the Earth. It was announced today that “A Teacher,” which premiered in Sundance’s adventuresome NEXT section, has been acquired by distributor Oscilloscope Laboratories. The film had already been scheduled to play the upcoming South by Southwest Film Conference and Festival, and Oscilloscope plans to release it in a combination of theatrical, video-on-demand and digital platforms later this year.

The feature debut for writer-director Hannah Fidell, “A Teacher” is also a strong showcase for actress Lindsay Burdge as a young high school teacher who undertakes an affair with a student, played by Will Brittain, which quickly unravels. Shot by rising indie cinematographer Andrew Droz Palermo, the film also has an original score by Brian McOmber, formerly with the band Dirty Projectors.

Oscilloscope has previously shown itself to be a home for audacious female filmmaker/actress pairings, having released Kelly Reichardt’s “Wendy and Lucy” and “Meek’s Cutoff,” both starring Michelle Williams, along with Lynne Ramsay’s “We Need to Talk About Kevin,” starring Tilda Swinton. In a statement, Fidell said, “We’re so thrilled to be joining the Oscilloscope family. Their films represent everything we love about cinema.”